Quack-grass destroyer.



A. L-. JOHNSON. QuAcK GRASS DESTROYER.

vAPPLICATION FILED AFR. II. I9I8.

Patented oet. 1, 1918;"

BY HIS ATTORNEY' 1 AN. L. JQHNSON. QUACK GRASS DESTROYERV APQLICATION FILED APR. l-l X918. y v Patented Got; 1, 1918..

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ALFRED L. JOHNSON, or BOAEDMAN, wisconsin..

QUACK-GBASS DESTRUYER Specication of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 1, 1918.

Application tiled April 11, 1818, `Serial No. 227,984.

To all whom it may concern: i

Be it known that I, ALFRED L. JOHNSON a citizen of the United States, residing at Boardman, in the county "of St. Croix and State of Wisconsin, have invented a new and useful Quark-(irrass Destroyer, ofwhich the following' is a specification.

`My invention relates to quack grass destroyers, und the object is to provide an efloi-live, durable and, simple machine for elirninmtugr quark-grass'and similar weeds l'rotn .t field.

lu tho ormoxupanying drawings; Figure l is a side elevation of my improved quack grass dcsirover. Fig'. 2 is n. top or plan View of Fig'. 1 with the seat und oever onuitted. Fig. 3 isa section on tho lino 3--3 in Fig. z. Fig. 4 is an. enlarged cross section of one oi the, rollers, as on line M in Fig. 2. Fig.- a sidol View' of a portion of one ol the rollers. Fig. l5 is a section about as on the linel (3--6 in Fig. 4. Fig. 7 is a redlued top riew of the main .portion of the n-un'hiuo with the cover andseat on it. Fig. S is a rear View Oi one corner of the frame and one of ihc ground wheels and its lever, and showin;r also oney of thc standards 10.

liefen-rieur to the drawing hy reference nnnierals, l designates a horizontai open trame having: i'our lateral studs-El on whifrh are piv-` olally rclaiuml hy ruiter' pins i'our upright .levers 4, cin-h nl' which has a. supporting wheel riding on the ,ground when the mtb rhino is drawn idle. "lho sinds 2 may be iixed in the traine or may he removably held therein by similar co1 ier pins il* (seellig. 8), At. earh side of the inarhine said levers 4 are pivotall connected h'y a rod and each front lever is extended upward lo forro-nhandlo Ty adapted to be engaged in a notch 8 of u brarliot 9 which is mount-od ou the front guard rail l0, said rail being scoured to the frame by braces 1l and a holt 1Q through nach front post 10 ofr the rail. A similar rail 13 is secured to the rear endof a hollow' upper frame section 1-1., which forms the, upper part of the traine l. and is provided with a lid 1o; `the latter is hinged at 1 6 and provided with seat 17 and :l cross har 1b which is spacedA from the over hy blocks l5) so ihnt'the occupant ol the ,sont may plneehis toesin under-film har and 5thus feel more safe. against heilig iulied nil trom the sont or i'i'oni the nuufllium..

Said upper frame soi-tion is held in plzive by lulving'its [ront corners pro\ '1ded with as teeth in uprootng the? weeds.

marred horns 20 adaptedA tobeV pushed" into apertures or lateral notches 21 in the front standards 10, and the rear portion of the seetion is provided with guides 22 (see Fig. l) straddling the lower frame section 1. is any suitable @levis arrangement for hitching the machine to a team or motor by whioh to ,draw it,

Joarnuled in the lower frame section l is a series or' parallel transversely arranged rollers 24, each of which when. made of wood.

is reinforced by several metallic collars or hands QF, 26; the collars QG being at the ends of the `rollers are preferably integral with the plates 27 and the journals 28 of the rollers.im llaeh roller is provided with a serios olf dialnetrical apertures 29, t-WO and two of .wluch intersect neach other at the axis of the roller. In said apertures are inserted a series of -metal bars BD, having vpointed and curved end portions 31 projertiug beyondvthe rollers where they serve The crossed middle portions of erich pair of bars are half-and-luilfed together as shown at 32 in Fig. (hand are held in such engagement h v one or' more wedges 33 driven into the space vacated bv moving-One har into en gageure-nt with t 1o other.

A third :trame seetion 34 is pivoted at 35 to the main frame 1 and arranged to swingV up and down some with its rear portion. In said portion is journaled' a multiple crank shaft. 36, the cranks of which operate, a, series of kicker hars 375 each of whiehhas its upper end slidably uided in a. transverse upper bar 3S of said ramo section and .its lower end provided' with resilient wirelinzers 39. On `said crank shaft is fixed e sfirorket 40, which is driven b a, link belt 41 and u. larger sprocket 42 w ich is loosely mounted airone of the rollers 24 and enr rics a. series of spring pressed -pawls 43 arran ed for engagement wlth a rati-het wheel .44 hxod on the roller. said arrangement being such. that whenl the machine is drawn' forward the Prank-shaft will be rotated, and if ari-ident-al'ly pushed backward the Crank shaft Awill not roiate because the pawls play lnu'kinrd on the rah-het teeth.

liroted at 45 to swing in horizontal piane upon the roar vnd of the main frame are two arms 46, .'r-arh ot which carries s, verticallyV -slidahle holt li. which is retained in pressed downward by a spring Z50- upon the 'no Y. the arm hy its nut 4S while the Ahead 19 is' Y parts 34'* of frame section 34, whereby said section is caused to press the tines 39 more firmly into the soil Where the latter may be extra hard or dry. When such extra pres-- sure is not required, the arms i6 are swung inward clear of' the frame parts' 34, as shown in Fig, 2; said retraction is performed by two rods 51 and a hand lever 52, said lever being pivoted at 53 and by a rod 54 connected to a beam lever 55 which is pivoted at 56 to a bracket 57 and connected with the rods 51.

As'galready stated, the Wheels 5, levers 4 7, and rods 6 are used only when the machine is drawn idle; for actual operation said parts are either entirely removed from the machine or they ma be swung to such a position that the whee s stand clearI of the round and the teetli of the rollers will sink lnto the ground; `as the machine is thus drawn forward the teeth of the rollers will pulverize the soil and thereby loosen the roots of the quack grass from it, whereupon the tines 39 will bring the roots upon the ground where they will soon die for Want of earth and moisture, whereupon they may be raked together and removed or burned. If anything clogs in the rollers the cover 15 may easily be raised so as to get at thex rollers without inverting the machine. When the machine; is again to be drawnl idle the wheels 5 are replaced with the-'levers 4 in almost horizontal position so as to get the studs 2 intothe'ir places without liftlng the frame; after the studs are thus in place the levers 7 and thereby the levers 4 are swung into vertical position whereby-the machine is raised with its teeth 31 clear off the ground and ready to ybe hauled like a vehicle,

What I claim is:

l.. In a machine of the elass described, a horizontally disposed skeleton frame with hitehing means at its front end, a series of spaced parallel rollers journaled across the frame and having each a series of teeth vadal'iteal to work in the soil, a multiple crank shaft journaledv across the rear part of the frame, an apertured transverse frame bar fixed upwardand forward of the crank shaft, a series of inclined members journaled one to each crank and having their upper ends guided in the apertred bar and the lower ends provided with tines adapted to pick the roots of the Weeds up and leave them exposed upon the ground, and operative connection between one of the rollers and said crank shaft to rotate it.

2. 'lhe structure specified in claim .1, said frame being made up of a front section in which the rollers are mounted, and a rear section hinged to the front section io swing up and down rearward of the hinges, said cranllrl shaft and"1ne1nbers operated by it beiiig mounted in said rear section, means mounted on the front frame section and arranged 'to engage the rea-r section and Weldingly i-inpel it tow-ard the grou1'1d, and l means for-.throwing .sa-id downward pressing means into active and into idle position as may be desired. v

.1n testimony whereof I aliix my signature.

ALFRED L. JOI INS( iN. 

